Portable vise



June 18,1940. J. A. WALLER PORTABLE VISE W4?'7TT T..W

i; 11 4' -26 B A' I 4 Jr. V

' 4 I 4 I INVENTOR.

a 1 JOHN A. WM 4 5R,

ATTORNEYS.

June 18, 1940. J. A. WALLER PORTABLE VISE Filed Sept. 3, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. L 1 FR,

IPRN JOHN A. h/A BY lllllnll rm mi !II h'iilllll Il l Patented June 18, 1940 UNITED [STATES PATENT OFFICE PORTABLE VISE John A. Waller, Beverly Hills, Calif.

Application September 3, 1938, Serial No. 228,359

3 Claims.

This invention relates to portable vise structures, and pertains particularly to a portable vise adapted for attachment to a bench, sawhorse, or other object.

One of the particular objects of the invention is to provide a portable vise device which may be secured to substantially any desired object, and which is subject to angular adjustment in position with respect to the support object so 1-0 as to adapt the same to use under substantially any circumstances.

A' further object of the invention is to provide a device adapted for adjustment at different levels with respect to the object to which it is secured,

wherefore the device may be used in an upstanding position to secure the article to be worked on, or disposed in a lowered position at a level closely adjacent that of the support object.

A further object of the invention is to provide a portable bench device which may be constructed of inexpensive materials, and which is adapted to occupy a minimum space when in folded condition, wherefore it may be transported from place to place with minimum dilficulty.

The device of the present invention comprises, essentially, a base member having a clamp portion adapted for attachment to a supportmember,such as a bench, ladder-leg, or the like; a sub-base member rotatably mounted on said base member 30, and provided with locking means for fixing the sub-base member in any desired angular position with respect to the base member itself, the subbase member being provided with a fixed jaw member. The device further comprises a second jaw member slidably mounted with respect to the sub-base portion and adapted for movement toward and away from the first jaw member, and screw means for moving the second jaw member. The device preferably also includes a construction which provides for sliding movement 'of the subbase member with respect to the base member,- which means may be associated with the means for establishing the sub-base member at any de-' sired rotative position with respect to the base "member, whereby the jaw portion of the device may be established at a particular level with respect to the working surface to which the clampor vise member is attached.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, or will be specifically brought out therein. Certain drawings are employed to illustrate the invention and referring thereto: 55 Fig. 1 is a perspective View of the device, showing the same in position on a bench or other ledge, ready for use;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof showing in full and dot-dash lines alternative positions of the vise member with respect to the support 5- means;

Fig. 3 is an end elevation thereof, taken on line 3-3 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a rearward view of the device taken substantially along line 4-4 in Fig. 3; V 1 0..

Fig. 5 is a corresponding View of the device taken in the opposite direction, on line 55 in Fig. 3

Fig. 6 is a partly broken-away rear elevation of the device taken on line 66 in Fig. 3; 15.

Fig. 7 is a view corresponding generally to that shown in Fig. 2, showing a device mounted on an inclined support member, with the vise itself disposed horizontally in position for use; and

Fig. 8 is a detail of the device taken on line 29,; 88 in Fig. 3.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, I have illustrated the device as comprising a base member I having a flat plate portion 2 provided with a lip portion 9 which may extend substan- 25, tially at right angles to the plate portion 2, as shown more particularly in Fig. 3, and a clamp screw 3 provided with a wing nut 4 and secured to the plate portion 2 of the base member through a side arm connection 5 and adapted for threaded 30 movement toward and away from the lip 9, wherefore a support structure may be engaged as at 6 between said lip member 9 and the bearing portion 1 of the screw 3. In this connection, it is usually convenient to recess the support struc- 35,, ture 6 in some such manner as shown at 8, in order to receive the lip 9, as shown in Fig. 3. A sub-base member II, carrying a fixed vise jaw I2, is rotatably disposed upon the plate portion 2 of the base member I, as through the agency of a bolt l3 mounted in a slot M in the portion 2 and extending through a bore 15 in the sub-base H, and provided with a locking wing nut Hi. In order to assist in positioning the sub-base H at a desired angular position with respect to the base I, I provide a plurality of lugs Ha disposed radially with respect to the bore I5 at the rear ward face of the sub-base ll, adapted to engage with a pair of longitudinal lugs la formed in the forward face of the plate portion 2 at opposite sides of the slot I 4. It will be understood that when the lock nut I6 is released, allowing the sub-base to be slidably moved upwardly or downwardly with respect to the base I, a given rotative adjustment of the sub-base H with respect to the base i will be preserved by the continued engagement of the lugs I la with the lugs la, and if a new rotative position of the sub-base H with respect to the base i is desired, it is merely necessary to back off the lock nut 16 to such an extent that the sub-base I! can be pulled away from the base i so as to free the lugs Ha and la, the sub-base moved to a new rotative position, and the wing nut tightened again. Due to the longitudinal extension of the lugs la, the same rotative position of the sub-base I! may be preserved at all positions thereof with respect to the base I, within the limits of movement defined by the slot I l.

The sub-base H is provided with a laterally extending support arm 2 l, which serves as a slide for a second jaw member 22, and said support arm carrying an overhanging bearing 23 which supports a screw 2 on which the jaw 22 is threadedly disposed as at a boss 25. The extreme end of the screw Ed is provided with a hub 26, through which an operating lever 27 may be extended.

The jaw 2?. is preferably also provided with a support arm 28, extending parallel with the support arm 2|, and passing below the jaw i2 and above the hub portion 28 of the sub-base H which surrounds the bolt i3. A positioning screw may be provided as at 3!, adapted to engage a lateral edge of the member 28 as at 32, to assist in maintaining the member 28 in relative alinement with respect to the sub-base I I.

As will be seen from a consideration of Fig. 2, the vise member may be so disposed with respect to a support 6 as to cause the jaws l2 and 22 to be disposed significantly above the upper edge of the support 6, as shown in full lines in Fig. 2. The device may be lowered as shown in dot-dash lines at A so that the upper edges of the jaws l2 and 22 lie substantially flush with the upper edge or face of the lip 9, and thus flush with the upper edge of the support 6 if the lip 9 is disposed within a chipped-out recess 8 as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. In either the elevated or depressed positions as shown in full lines and at A respectively, the device may be inclined at an angle to the support, as shown in dot-dash lines at B in Fig. 2. This arrangement of the device makes it highly advantageous from the standpoint of facilitating work on small pieces, such as is often encountered in cabinet work, in that the device may be inclined at an angle to the work bench and a surface planed or sawed at a desired angle while permitting the user to adopt the most comfortable position for his particular working requirements.

In addition to the features which result when the device is clamped directly upon a fiat working surface such as a bench or the like shown at 6, the relative adjustment features of the present invention make it particularly useful where it is required that the device he clamped upon a ladder-leg, sawhorse leg, or the like. Such a situation is illustrated in Fig. '7, in which an inclined support member is indicated at 35, such as may result from the use of a sawhorse leg or the like as a support. Where the base I is attached to such an inclined support, it will frequently be desirable to clamp the same directly to the support, using the inner face 211 of the lip 9 for engagement of one side of the support, instead of recessing the support as shown at 3 in Figs. 1 and 3. With this arrangement the jaws 22 and l2 may be disposed in a substantially vertical position, irrespective of the particular angle of disposition of the support 35, wherefore the device may be used to support the edge of a door or the like which a carpenter may be required to plane, allowing the door itself to rest on the floor or other working surface and the vise member relied upon to maintain the door in its desired vertical position.

I preferably also provide the device with a tongue member 36 extending rearwardly from the fixed jaw l2, as shown more particularly in Figs. 1, 3, 4, and 7, so that relatively heavy pieces of lumber may be butted against the device and held in position during planing or draw-knife operations, for example. Other modifications of the device will be apparent to those skilled in the art, for which reason I do not choose to be limited to the herein delineated and described modifications, but rather to the scope of the subjoined claims.

From the above description, it will be apparent that the device is adapted for attachment to any structure small enough to be clamped between the lip 9 and the bearing portion 1 of the screw 3. These bearing portions are defined as opposing upper and lower shoulder means in the subjoined claims, primarily for the sake of simplicity of description, inasmuch as in use on a bench these shoulder means will be in an upper and lower relation, as shown in the drawings. Where the vise is clamped to a vertical support,

after the general manner shown in Fig. 7, the

upper and lower significance is lost but the general terminology is still applicable. It will be appreciated that the fixed and movable jaws l2 and 22 will be provided with opposed work-en- I gaging faces disposed in parallel planes, as is customary in ordinary vise constructions, and the relative movement of the jaws in use will be normal to such planes. The pivot pin or bolt 13 is disposed below the position of the upper shoulder 9 (in normal use when clamped to a flat bench member) and the axis of rotation of the sub-base II as defined by the bolt l3 will be parallel to the aforesaid planes, wherefore the device is capable of withstanding the forces set up at the jaws l2 and 22 and communicating such forces to the clamping means with minimum distortion of the base and sub-base.

I claim:

1. A portable vise which comprises: a base member provided with a clamp portion for attachment to a support, and having an elongated slot in one side thereof; bolt means extending through said slot; a sub-base member provided with a hub portion disposed over said bolt means and carrying a vise assembly; a plurality of spaced lugs disposed radially about one side of said hub member and directed toward said base member; a longitudinally extending lug on said base member extending along each side of said elongated slot and adapted to engage between said spaced lugs on said sub-base member; and means for clamping said sub-base member to said base member to cause the respective lug means on said base member and sub-base member to be in positive engagement.

2. A portable vise which comprises: a subbase provided with a fixed jaw member having a work-engaging face extending in a plane; a movable jaw member having a work-engaging face and disposed in a plane substantially. parallel to said first-named plane and slidably movable toward and away from said fixed jaw member in a direction substantially normal to said planes; a main base member provided with opposing upper and lower clamping shoulders at one side thereof for attachment of the vise to a support; a bolt member mounted on said main base member and extending rotatably through said subbase to define a pivotal mount for said. sub-base on said main base member at the other side of said main base member, and defining an axis of rotation extending substantially parallel to said planes and substantially normal to said direction of movement of said movable jaw member, and said bolt member extending through an upwardly and downwardly extending slot provided in said base member and adapted for upward and downward sliding movement therein; upwardly and downwardly elongated lug means on said main base member extending outwardly therefrom at said other side thereof, adjacent and substantially parallel to said slot; cooperating lug means on said sub-base positioned toengage said first-named lug means at various rotative positions of said sub-base with respect to said main base member; and clamp means cooperating with said bolt member to fix the rotative position of said sub-base with respect to said main base member and to fix the position of said bolt member within said slot.

3. A portable vise which comprises: a base member provided with a clamp portion for attachment to a support; a sub-base member slidably mounted on said base member for pivotal movement about an axis extending transverse to the direction. of slidable movement thereof; locking means cooperating with said base member and said sub-base member and operable to constrain said sub-base member with respect to said base member; a pair of cooperating jaw members mounted on said sub-base member for relative sliding movement toward and away from one another in a direction transverse to said axis, and cooperating lug means on said base member and said sub-base member, said cooperating lug means comprising lug means on said base member extending in the direction of slidable movement of said sub-base member, and lug means on said sub-base member arranged radially about the axis of pivotal movement thereof, said cooperating lug means being adapted to interengage one another to positively fix said base members in any one, of a plurality of established rotative positions in cooperation with said locking means when said locking means is tightly locked, and being of such length in the direction of said axis as to be further adapted to interengage and constrain said base 'm-embers substantially in such an established rotative position when said locking means is loosened to facilitate sliding movement of said sub-base member with respect to said base member.

JOHN A. WALLER. 

